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As a predoctoral intern in the geropsychology track of a psychoanalytically oriented internship, I felt especially interested to read Tamara McClintock Greenberg's book, Psychodynamic Perspectives on Illness and Aging. The literature available to inform analytic therapy with elderly patients is fairly scant, and it has left my mind a little lonely. Since I entered graduate school several years ago, I felt drawn to treating seniors, but quickly realized I was in the minority among my colleagues. At best, fellow students had a hard time relating to my interest, and, at worst, they were visibly horrified by it. “Oh, I could not do that,” was the reply of several colleagues, as we perused our options for upcoming practica. This response was often based on the supposition that the work would feel too sad and be too hard because they were unsure how much elderly patients could benefit from therapy, and their nearness to the end of life felt discouraging. Equally puzzling to me was an entirely different response: that geropsychology was a worthy pursuit because “the population is aging,” which sometimes sounded like: “It's good you enjoy working with older people, at least you'll be busy.” Neither response took into account that the work might be meaningful, challenging, and satisfying. I have since found colleagues and mentors who are supportive and curious about my experience, but there persists a subtle stance of skepticism and distance coming from the field, making Greenberg's book appealing company.
It is true that the population is aging. The APA web page devoted to the mental health of older Americans informs the reader of the “critical need for more geropsychologists,” citing evidence that the number of adults age 65 and older is projected to soar to 72.1 million by 2030 — up from 40.3 million in 2010 (Institute of Medicine, 2012). It further states that although only 4.2 percent of practicing psychologists identify geropsychology as their primary focus of work, 39